Bob Frantz: Signs point toward Johnny Manziel becoming a franchise QB

“He’s too small.”
“He’s elusive!”
“He’s too playground.”
“He knows how to improvise!”
“He’s not a pocket passer.”
“He makes plays!”
“He’s too cocky.”
“He’s got swagger!”
“He’s gonna be a bust.”
“He’s gonna be a star!”
“He” of course is Johnny Manziel, and “he” is the most polarizing figure to hit the NFL draft in recent memory.
Fans and analysts either love him or they hate him, with no real middle ground of which to speak, and “he” is going to be in Cleveland this weekend for a private workout with the Browns.
It’s no secret the Browns are desperately in need of a franchise quarterback who’s interested in playing with all the new offensive toys assembled this offseason by GM Ray Farmer, but do Cleveland fans want Manziel in their toy box?
Depends on whom you ask.
Some loyal locals want Brian Hoyer to have the job, having been sold on the three starts he has made in his five-year NFL career, two of which he actually finished before getting injured. Hoyer looked better than Brandon Weeden in those starts, they reasoned, so that must mean he’s the guy.
I wish I shared their enthusiasm.
Hoyer is a great story, and if the St. Ignatius product could make it big in his hometown, it would be terrific. But I believe there’s a reason he’s bounced between three teams in five years, having never being given the starter’s job. The Browns must do better. And with Johnny Football, they might. And they might not.
For some, Manziel’s height is just too much — or, technically, too little — to overcome. To you and me, he measured in at 6-foot at the NFL Scouting Combine. To the hyper-critical, he came in at 5-11 3/4.
Hold your thumb and index finger a quarter of an inch apart, if you can. Or better yet, grab a ruler and have a look at it. That miniscule amount of space you see is the apparently the difference between a potentially successful career and a waste of time. At 6-foot, some say, we can live with his height. At 5-11 3/4 … it’s a deal-breaker.
Personally, I look at Manziel’s height, his poise under pressure, and his escapability, and I see a guy who reminds me at different times of 6-foot Fran Tarkenton, 6-foot Drew Brees, and 5-11 Russell Wilson. At other times, he’s reminiscent of 6-1 Brian Sipe and 6-foot Joe Theismann.
Obviously, there is nothing that says he will be as great as all of those highly accomplished quarterbacks, but there’s nothing saying his height will prevent him from being great, either. There is a place in the NFL for smaller, more mobile quarterbacks who have the ability to make plays and win games with their legs as well as their arms. Manziel can do both.
Another big question mark in the minds of the doubters is Manziel’s durability. Those who watched him play with any regularity in the SEC know he not only took a lot of big hits, but that he sought them out. He’s a quarterback with a fullback’s mentality, and there’s no doubt he will have to tone that down to last on the sport’s highest level.
However, as his Wonderlic score of 32 — highest among any quarterback in the draft — shows he’s a pretty smart guy. He’ll learn quickly when and where to get down without taking the big shots.
That high football IQ will also go a long way toward disproving another negative theory about Johnny Football — the one that says he’s the product of a spread offensive system that never required him to read defenses while at Texas A&M.
For successful NFL signal-callers, the game requires a tremendous amount of film work and studying of opponents defensive tendencies. Every little crack must be exploited, and the best QB’s are the ones willing to spend hours every week looking for those cracks. Well, the book on Manziel is that he is absolutely driven to be a winner, a guy who will do whatever it takes to break down a defense.
Add that type of dedication to the IQ indicated by his Wonderlic tests, and it’s not difficult to see Manziel making the transition from system passer in the SEC to on-field strategist in the NFL.
Finally, we come to the burdensome questions about the kid’s maturity. After becoming the first freshman in the history of college football to win the Heisman Trophy, Manziel did have a few run-ins — nothing criminal — that put a stain on his pure Johnny Football reputation, and it’s enough to scare some observers away. Given the white-hot spotlight that the kid has been under since grade-school football, it should come as no surprise that a few personality warts are visible.
Those minor social hiccups appear to be well behind him now, as his single-mindedness of purpose to become a champion in the National Football League seems to be the only driving force in his live, according to those who know him best. He may still carry that swagger that some find off-putting, but ask yourself: Would you want a quarterback who wasn’t that confident in himself?
So what does all this mean to Cleveland? Maybe nothing. Maybe everything.
The Browns need a franchise quarterback. My money says Manziel will become one. If and when he does so in another city because the Browns passed on him, Browns fans may well be looking back on the missed opportunity of 2014 as just another wrong turn in their long, meandering journey through the NFL wilderness.

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About the Author

Reach the author at frantz.media@yahoo.com. Follow Bob on Twitter: @BobFrantz80.